Sparrowkeep

About 90 miles north of Zobeck lies a strange little hamlet called Sparrowkeep. Once a substantial border town, Sparrowkeep suffered greatly in the second half of the nineteenth century from intensive Goblin raiding parties descending from the Icespire Mountains and the nearby Brownleaf (also called Dapperling) Woods (known as the Harrowing). Although the Mountain Goblins were largely driven back and suppressed, pockets remained in the woods that continue to harrass the small town to this day.
It is thought that Sparrowkeep was founded in the early fifteeth century during the First Concord of Yore - a rare time of peace when trade flourished in the region and the population boomed with a succession of good harvests - although there is evidence to suggest that there has been a settlement of sorts here since the Dark Age of Rothenia (circa 300 NE) or even earlier.
In more typically feudal times before Zobeck gained its independence in 1680, its wealth was based on agriculture, wool and timber, and there was a permanent garrison stationed at the keep. Nowadays it very much plays second fiddle to the Free City of Clockwork (called Fornost by the The Qualinesti Elves) to the South, although it could be argued that Zobeck's surplus wealth also helped to prevent the town from being abandoned altogether during the worst of the Harrowing.
The squat keep that overlooks the town is now beginning to crumble, but once housed a permanent militia that patrolled the Great Northern Tradeway. The current Lord Starlin Sparrow is descended from a long line that traces its ancestry back many centuries, but he has a reputation as a reclusive, nervous sort with a short temper and decadent ways. In the keep's courtyard is a large sculpture of a sparrow, for the town is named after the burgeoning population of sparrows that inhabit it. Very recently the sparrows disappeared, and nobody can explain why.
Certainly the most renowned and dominating feature of the town is the cyclopean obsidian foot that protrudes from the ground in the centre of the conurbation. About 40' high and made of seemingly indestructible smooth black stone, this ancient monument is of mysterious origin. Nobody seems to agree on when it appeared, and rumours of its origination vary wildly from its being part of a gargantuan statue shattered in some forgotten war, to the remains of a shattered god or demon fallen from the Heavens or risen from the Abyss. Some say it is of alien origin, others argue it is the archaeology of a long-lost civilisation of giants pushed up by tectonic activity.
There are deep excavations around it that reveal an ankle below the surface, but operations were abandoned when archaeologists suffered excruciating headaches and tinnitus, and were haunted by nightmares that pushed a few to madness.
The Shady Tavern, run by the ruddy Amona Large, nestles beneath the foot. The owner hangs non-perishable foodstuffs from the toes in nets, and outdoor tables around the foot are in permanent shade. It is said that consuming food at th etavern gives you strange dreams. The cellars of the tavern link to the excavations, where fraying rope ladders are still in place leading down into the darkness.
Other places of note include the Creaking Inn, run by the creepy Phil Bottomcleft, a humid and half-rotten place built over hot springs that creaks and shifts disconcertingly and smells faintly of sulphur; the Bighorn Outfitters run by ex-adventurer Marvin Bighorn and whose entrance is adorned with a pair of enormous black horns mounted on the lintel - Marvin claims they belonged to a really big cow, but other say they are from something much bigger.
The only major place of worship in the town is the Temple of Light, a circular unroofed building with a fountain at its centre and marble statues of Elves reaching up to a suspended glowing orb that seems to hum and most recently has been heating up alarmingly. In a circular hut nearby lives the High Elven priest, Elovyn Sorrowsong, who tends lovingly to the people of the town but speaks nothing of her deity.
There is a small gaol attached to the office of the fair-minded Sheriff Felica Fullintraye, and various dwellings and shops, with farms and crofters' huts (many abandoned) spilling out into the surrounding farmland. In recent months a mercenary company has been staying at the town - the Flashheart Company led by the foppish Dash Flashheart - and dealing with the local Goblin tribe with practically zero success.
Other recent visitors include a mysterious cloaked figure with a pointy beard called Illintendo Sharpchin, and the famous The Hedge-Wizard Grendelf Erandir, who was reported to have travelled to Sparrowkeep to meet with someone at the keep.
Sparrowkeep suffers harsh winters and wet summers, being in the shadow of the towering Icepires. But harvests are generally good and Springtime can be fair and pleasant. It lies upon the River Running, a swift course of clear glacial meltwater that feeds the swamps to the East.
Nearby are the sprawling The Festering Marshes, said to be guarded by a fearsome Troll and hiding a large population of nomadic Orcs called the Urzin, who ride gargantuan tortoises called Horizonbacks; and also a network of caverns and the ruins of various towers, churches (including the Ivy Church) and a monastery.
The people of Sparrowkeep are generally buoyant, friendly rural types, used to seeing Elves and Halflings from the North beyond the mountains, Dwarfs from the West and merchants of all creeds travelling up from multicultural Zobeck. They generally worship gods of hearth and harvest. The biggest festival in Sparrowkeep is no doubt the Summer Fayre, a merry celebration that includes the infamous Heiffer Hurlover competition.

Type

Town